Why are we transforming?

Times have changed. The roles of Councils in 2024 are very different from what they were back in 2002 when the Local Government Act was made, or in 1989 when four Councils came together to make one in the Waitaki District. Over the past thirty-five years, since our Council was set up, both the area and our communities have changed a lot.   

Like all councils, we’re under pressure from high costs, ageing infrastructure, and rising demands. To keep our district affordable, and make improvements, we need to work differently and use our spaces, resources and our staff team differently too.

Transformation is mainly about being a more effective organisation in what we deliver and how we deliver it for you. But we aim to be more efficient too, to keep costs down. We’re working hard to build in value for money with the essential services we deliver.

We need to start doing things differently now because...

 

Our responsibilities as a Council have grown

The Government and Parliament make many laws, rules and changes that affect councils. For example, when the Government changes their rules about building, water, or the environment, Councils have to change their plans, talk to people, and spend more money. The Government does not give us extra money for that. The Government also sets the standards for our roads, pipes, water and buildings, and these make them more expensive to build or fix.

Councils have to do many things that the Government tells us to do, like checking the air quality, making sure motorhomes have toilets, making buildings stronger against earthquakes, and making sure dams are safe. These are all extra work for Council.

Some other ways we get money, like fines for parking, dogs, or alcohol, have not changed for a long time. The Government decides how much we can charge for them, and because the charges have not increased, they are not enough to cover our costs.

All councils are facing big cost pressures

Nobody likes to hear that the Rates will go up, as everyone in our community is feeling the money squeeze. Just like your family budget, Council is feeling the pinch too. 

The prices of things we need to buy or fix for our district have not gone down, and we have a small number of people paying for a big area. So, to deliver the things our community needs but at a price people can afford, we need to change. 

On top of the rising prices, the Government wants us to make new plans and models for our water services, and they are not giving us any money for that. The cost of meeting the water standards over the next ten years is estimated at almost $½ Billion! Thats a big cost for a small community. The Government also want us to pay more for fixing roads after storms or floods, which could be between $1 and $1.4 million extra for us to find each year. 

Like most councils, the money picture is not clear. Our forecasts on how much debt and rates we will need to pay for the things our district needs, do not look affordable if we keep doing things the same way. Our costs are going up and so are costs for our community – we need to live within our means. We need to live within our communities’ means. 

The financial forecast isn't pretty

This graph was in our Annual Plan Consultation Document and the Enhanced Annual Plan 2024 – 25.

debt affordability graph.png

We know this is not a good graph. It shows Council borrowing more money than we can afford in the next five years. But doing things the way we have traditionally done them, means we will need to spend this much to deliver what the Government says we must deliver and what our communities need. 

Some of Council’s assets are very old and need to be replaced in the next ten years. Some parts of our water system need to be upgraded or replaced to meet the higher standards the Government wants. These are very expensive projects, but we cannot just put them off. Spending money now, and paying back loans over a long time, means that the people who use the things now won’t be paying for all of it.  

Instead, everyone who uses the assets pays a share of its cost, over time. For example, if new water pipes last 50 years, by using loans, everyone who uses those pipes over 50 years will pay their share of the cost and it will not all have to be paid by ratepayers who use it at the time it needs replacing. 

Council has said the money model for local Government is broken, these graphs show how broken. We and other councils in New Zealand are urging the Government to change the way local government is funded, so that we can pay for the things we need to pay for, so that it is fair and so we can get a better deal for our Ratepayers. 

Rates increase graph.png

This graph shows how much the Rates will go up for the Waitaki District in the next ten years, if we carry on doing things the way we have traditionally done them. 

Rates make up around 55% of Council’s income, with the rest coming from Government Subsidies and Grants, Fees and Charges and Finance Revenue (such as interest from lending money to other organisations). The current Government have said they will only give money to Councils as a ‘last resort’, which makes it harder for us to get income as a Council. 

With the money Council must spend on things, that means rates go up to be able to afford it. 

We can't afford to just spend less

Council has already started looking at ways to save money and be more efficient as part of Transformation, and our 2024 – 2025 Annual Plan.

We’re looking for ways to save, but keep the services the community wants. The hard truth is that even if Council only did the very basic things; roads, water, planning and buildings, the money we need for them would still be more than our income over the next ten years. Council would still need to borrow money but would not be offering the services the community wants and needs. 

Transformation is about protecting the services our community needs – not cutting them. But it means doing things differently so we are genuinely more efficient. We need Council to be leaner, more efficient and cost-effective – transformation is one part of it. 

Our community has changed

Over the last 35 years our community has changed a lot. Our people have changed as our population has grown and diversified, we work in different jobs and occupations – some that didn’t exist even 5 years ago, our recreation needs are different. We serve a community that continues to grow and whose needs and expectations will continue to change.  

This means our Council needs to change also, to ensure we can engage with you, listen to you and understand, your changing needs. Transformation begins with changing how Council works internally, and changing how your Council works for you. 

Technology is changing

20 years ago, who would have thought that almost all of us would have a powerful, internet connected, computer i.e. a cell phone in our pocket today?

Technology has been evolving fast, and the pace of change is increasing. Developments in technology now enable different ways of delivery and improved levels of customer service.

Council needs to continue to use technology and different ways of delivering things for you to improve services for our community better and deliver them more efficiently so our community can afford them. We are not replacing staff with Artificial Intelligence or “bots”. We are just looking to use technology to make improvements and efficiencies whilst ensuring there are still friendly staff ready to help you.

We all want Waitaki to be the best it can be

Our Elected Members and the communities of Waitaki are ambitious for the development of the district and the improvement of quality of life and wellbeing. These aspirations are shared by our staff too, who are also members of our community, and want the best for our district and its people.  

We all know Waitaki is a great place, and we want it to keep getting better. This is why we choose to live here. To achieve this, we need to change how we serve our community, by thinking about our places and the outcomes we want to deliver. 

       

 

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